Abdulrasheed Olurombi is a First Class Law graduate of the Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU) in Ogun State. He graduated with a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 4.81 on a scale of 5.00. In this interview by Awau Adegoke, he speaks about his academic feat, the Nigerian legal system, among others.
Did childhood experience, secondary school influence, advice or mentorship have anything to do with your decision to study law or become a lawyer?
The first advice I received on studying law was when I was in JSS1 or thereabout. A senior at my place of apprenticeship asked what I wanted to be, and I told him, “An accountant.” Having known my sisters to have been in commercial classes and were planning to study commercial-related courses, he recommended that I go for law, that I had what it required.
He had wanted to study law but was admitted for English. That made me think about law and ever since then, it had been my dream course. Meanwhile, my idea of law and lawyers then were about the wig, gown, human rights—and, you know the rest.
In your recent LinkedIn post, you stated that you entered the university in 2019, straight from secondary school, to study law. What was the experience like studying law at such an age?
Before gaining admission into the university, I already had friends who were in the university and some were about to graduate. They had always given me gist about campus life. So, it was just experiencing the things I had heard.
Studying was not easy. As expected, there was a lot to read. I had lived closely with four different law students, two of whom were in 500 level when I graduated. I guess conversations with them did not make me expect more than I had heard from them. However, they were not keen on extra-curricular, and I might have discovered the extra-curricular activities late. But when I did, I had to give it my all.
What aspects or areas of law interest you more and why?
I am more interested in commercial law, corporate governance, banking, and fintech. I also have a keen interest in dispute resolution. I fell in love with contract law, seeing how the daily transactions we do not take seriously have legal implications. I think my inclination towards business law is also informed by my original interest in commerce. Accounting was the only commercial course I did not do in secondary school.
What was the title of your final-year project and what were the major findings from it?
My final year project was titled ‘An appraisal of consumer protection in sale of goods contract in Nigeria’. The major findings included a loophole in the FCCPA that there is no exact duty on the manufacturer to disclose information about goods, such as correct usage, warnings and quality. Also, the dispute resolution mechanics in the FCCPA are not effective for certain reasons, one of which is the centralisation of the Consumer Protection Tribunal, making it far away from many consumers. There is also the unclear statement of certain duties or the non-encompassing nature of some. For instance, the liability of the seller for innocent misrepresentation appears unremedied.
Lack of awareness is also a challenge to consumer protection. In fact, I recommended that consumer protection be included as a part of the curriculum of law students, even if it is just the duties of sellers and the rights of consumers as contained in the FCCPA.
In your LinkedIn post, you mentioned that you were the head of your faculty moot court and also the head of a chamber at your faculty. Could you tell us about your role and experience in these offices?
Yes, I was. It was mainly facilitating training sessions and organising moot and mock competitions. As chamber head, I ensured training for chamber members and also participated in moot competitions. It was a good avenue to cultivate leadership qualities, time management, and decision-making skills. Sometimes, you had to choose between certain persons to represent the chamber, making sure you made the best decision for the chamber. There was a client counselling and interview competition in the faculty for the first time and I had to reach out to a colleague in another school to train my chamber members and me. The experiences were nice.
Can you share your most memorable or impactful experiences during your time in school?
A lot of them. In one mock trial, the presiding judge asked if I was a “mercenary”. The one which I would consider the most memorable was during a national moot court competition that proceeded for three straight days. At the end of the competition, I was awarded the Best Advocate. What made it so memorable was that the decision was based on the recommendation of a high court judge, a magistrate, and a learned silk, all of whom witnessed me argue in two different courts. An award based on the recommendation of persons of such repute will always be memorable.
Also, in my 400 level, when I did Law of Banking and Insurance, we critically examined the whole of BOFIA, CBN Act, Insurance Act, and NAICOM Act. Meanwhile, we were just two who took the course—you could not just copy one another. It was a very tasking, but enlightening and impactful experience.
What are the things or situations you think your university could improve to make life and schooling comfortable for students?
As to comfort, the school should allow registered student organisations to hold their activities inside campus. The school may also want to improve on its ICT facilities, including the provision of internet, even if on payment of a token. Lecture rooms can also be more conducive.
What do you think is the role of lawyers and the law courts in making society a better place, given that the more laws we have, the more crime seems to increase?
The role of lawyers, I believe, is to uphold the law. Just like courts, lawyers must identify legislative intent, and where the statement of the law does not fully capture the likely intent, they should properly advise the legislature to capture growing concerns.
Prosecutorial discretion must also be exercised fairly with accountability. There seems to be an increase in crimes because some crimes do not get to court and perpetrators continue to believe they can easily get out of arrest on proper ‘settlement’. Lawyers must not encourage this. Lawyers must also continue to foster public awareness of law, particularly those that relate to the dealings of government or legal institutions. This will better hold the institutions accountable to the public, if not for anything, for public perception.
A country is as good or bad as its legal system. As someone familiar with the Nigerian legal system, if you were to recommend three things that would strengthen the legal system, that would help make the country a better place than it currently is now, what would they be?
One would be a more relaxed adherence to technicality. Some cases drag on for a long just to resolve a technical issue before going back to the substantive. Lots of cases get struck out after years for want of diligent prosecution. There is also a need to ensure prosecutorial diligence.
The police most often charge suspects without credible evidence or witnesses to prosecute, perhaps hoping to get them during the course of the trial, contributing to the congestion of the courts. When such cases are struck out, the officers in charge should be subject to review to ensure such shoddy prosecution is not corruption-informed.
I also suggest better automation of the system, such as recording court proceedings instead of writing to expedite judicial proceedings.
The judiciary should also work on its perception. Currently, the perception of the courts is not what it should be. There could be some sort of review by lawyers after cases. There continue to be reports of unjudicial behaviours and judicial dereliction recently, particularly at the magistrate level.
After law school, every fresh lawyer has a vision and dreams of what they want to do with their law training. What unique thing would you want to do with your legal training and why?
I am not sure if it is something unique. But I know I possess a sound analytical mind and eye for the not-so-obvious. So, one of the things I intend to do is to contribute to the reform of our laws through advocacy by writing legal opinions or making compelling arguments in courts to shape our legal principles. And, when I say advocacy and reform of our laws, it transcends into our laws in the industrial areas. I would also love to be involved in legal drafting. I am also inclined towards academics.
In the law profession, who are your three mentors and why? Where do you see yourself in five years?
I do not have mentors per se. I have always sought guidance from seniors on different matters at different times.
In the next five years, all things being equal, I should be at least three years post-call, I should be doing well in a top tier, setting my presence in the profession or in an Ivy League university pursuing my LLM.
What is your advice to students aspiring to achieve the kind of academic feat you achieved?
My advice is for them to be ready to put in the work. It is important to identify your strengths and weaknesses and let them reflect the level of effort.
You cannot study at the same rate as someone who grasps things quicker or retains longer than you do. The unfair nature of life, by which certain qualities are not evenly distributed, means you may have to do twice as much as someone else to achieve even half of what they achieved.
Be ready to pursue it to the end with the required efforts, notwithstanding any setbacks. Set your priorities and have brilliant seniors you always turn to.
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